In this empirical study we examined the effect of a literacy-infused science intervention on fifth grade economically challenged students' science achievement in the curriculum-based and standardized assessments. A total of 27 treatment students and 20 comparison students from two intermediate schools in a rural district in South Texas in the…

Developed by national reading experts for "reading partners" to use with children, ages birth to grade 6, this booklet presents activities that help very young children to get ready for reading and writing, and guide older children to expand their reading and writing interests and skills. The booklet has three sections, one for…

Developed by national reading experts for "reading partners" to use with children, ages birth to grade 6, this Spanish-language booklet presents activities that help very young children to get ready for reading and writing, and guide older children to expand their reading and writing interests and skills. The booklet has three sections,…

A classroom field experiment was conducted on the effects of preparation homework and practice homework on student achievement in a fifth-grade social studies class, when used in conjunction with cooperative learning. The study investigated whether cooperative learning with or without preparation or practice homework produces greater student…

Suggests adding excitement to social studies instruction by using trade books. Cites research associating the reading of historical fiction with increased historical understanding. Describes the benefits of trade books' narrative form. Argues that such books can change students into active learners, help them study a slice of history, and increase…

A study tested the hypothesis that students who were required to read a book of their choice for 15 minutes per night would have a more positive attitude toward reading than similar students who did not have that assignment. The Estes Attitude Scale for reading was given to two classes (high group and low group) of sixth graders in central…

Discusses why time planning is important for middle school readers. Outlines the steps in effective time planning. Describes how to help students apply time planning techniques. Presents evidence of the effectiveness of this planning program. (SR)

The reading exercises in this workbook cover the general areas of vocabulary development; study skills; comprehension skills; and reading in the content areas. The latter consists of reading materials divided into four major sections: social studies, science, mathematics, and literature. The vocabulary skills include word meaning in context,…

The reading exercises in this workbook cover the general areas of vocabulary development; study skills; comprehension skills; and reading in the content areas. The latter consists of reading materials divided into four major sections: social studies, science, mathematics, and literature. The vocabulary skills include working with synonyms,…

Presents a strategy to improve students' comprehension of content material by having them read, discuss, and give written responses to items pertaining to short content texts. (MG)

A study examined students' metacognitive response to ambiguous literacy tasks to determine the relationship between that response and academic achievement. Subjects were 11 students chosen from a fifth-grade classroom in a small, urban school serving a predominantly black, middle class neighborhood. Two literacy tasks were identified as ambiguous:…

An analysis was conducted of 12 fourth-grade science and social studies lessons in which a textbook was used as a focus of instruction. The purpose was to determine how the textbook was used by teachers and students, and in particular, to determine what kinds of questions the teachers asked during the textbook-based lessons. The results replicate…

A study examined retelling as a reading comprehension-enhancing technique. Subjects were 26 urban, lower socio-economic fourth graders from New Jersey (Essex County), including 10 girls and 16 boys. A control sample answered questions as a follow-up to reading basal stories; an experimental sample retold the stories as a follow-up. Comparable…

Describes a study which examined through classroom observations of reading and social studies whether elementary schools provide comprehension instruction. Major findings included the fact that almost no comprehension instruction was found. (MKM)

The reading exercises in this workbook cover the general areas of basic phonics; word structure (including compound words, prefixes, contractions, possessives, syllabication, word meaning, similes, vocabulary in content areas, analogies, and idioms); study skills (including dictionary skills, using an encyclopedia and index, reading a map, reading…